Despite having an engineering background, Dian Achiong’s true passion is art. He was stuck in a job he did not enjoy. That was also the same time when he realized his love for expressing his creativity through graphic design. Two years ago, he took the courage to quit his job and pursued the opportunities in freelancing.

However, his family was pressuring him to choose a more stable career. After a few months of discouragement, Dian found himself back to an office desk in an engineering company.

Another year later, Dian learned about a friend who’s been doing great at Freelancer.com. This time, he did his research. “I had to learn about time and money management,” he explained.

He gathered information and read about the experiences of other freelancers online. Taking another leap of faith, Dian quit his job and gave freelancing another try.

This time around, his hard work paid off and he’s fully enjoying the benefits that come with working on Freelancer. He became a Preferred Freelancer on the platform, and can finally earn a living doing what he loves. Dian can also find time to further develop his skills.

“I am so happy that I can manage my own work time,” Dian said. The ability to choose his own working hours is one of the best things he like about being a freelancer. Working on Freelancer.com gives him the freedom to take a time off whenever he wants. Money is no longer an issue too. Dian can make enough money to last him for one month in just three days of working.

Dian uses the Freelancer mobile app to help him plan his working hours and take work with him on the go. “I can work anywhere,” he said.

The global nature of Freelancer.com also allows him to share his skills and collaborate with employers and other freelancers from across the globe.

Dian particularly enjoys joining Freelancer Contests for the thrill of the competition. He loves the learning process, getting feedback, gaining better understanding of employers’ needs, and being able to create something to fit those needs. It doesn’t matter if he wins or not. “No matter [what], I love to create something different,” he explained.

At first, his family was still dubious of his newfound career, but Dian could not wait to share his success story with them. It did not take long for his news to make an impact on his family and friends, that later on, his sister started working on Freelancer, too.

He is keen for people to learn from his experiences of breaking free from a full time office job. His advice to other disheartened designers struggling to find work? “Never give up.”

Dian is a fantastic example of a passionate freelancer whose hard work and patience paid off and allowed him to have the career he loves and deserves.

Hire Dian for your design projects on Freelancer.com! You can also check out the Showcase page for a collection of awesome works done by freelancers all over the world.

I run International Marketing Communication campaigns at Freelancer.com, based in the London office. I also lead Freelancer's Case Study Program, where we write inspirational success stories of employers and freelancers around the world. When not busy working or organising tech & design networking events, I enjoy exploring the globe.